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Object Timeline

-0001

1948

  • Work on this object began.

1991

  • We acquired this object.

1996

2006

2015

2024

  • You found it!

Ball Wall Clock, Model 4755 Clock

This is a clock. It was designed by George Nelson, George Nelson and George Nelson Associates and manufactured by Herman Miller Clock Company and Howard Miller Clock Company. It is dated 1948 and we acquired it in 1991. Its medium is wood, paint, steel, sheet metal. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

The Ball Clock, part of the Chronopak series of electric wall and table clocks by George Nelson Associates for Howard Miller Clock Company, is an example of the playfulness of 1950s designers, who moved away from the severe functionalism of prewar decades. It also reflects the short-lived fashion after World War II for motifs related to atomic models and the nuclear age, offered here in a lighthearted, cartoon-like style.

This object was donated by Mel Byars. It is credited Gift of The Mel Byars Collection.

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Its dimensions are

Diam x D: 33.3 x 6.5 cm (13 1/8 x 2 9/16 in.)

Cite this object as

Ball Wall Clock, Model 4755 Clock; Designed by George Nelson ((American, 1908–1986)), George Nelson Associates (United States); Manufactured by Herman Miller Clock Company (United States), Howard Miller Clock Company; USA; wood, paint, steel, sheet metal; Diam x D: 33.3 x 6.5 cm (13 1/8 x 2 9/16 in.); Gift of The Mel Byars Collection; 1991-26-1

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Pixar: The Design of Story.

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<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18636273/ |title=Ball Wall Clock, Model 4755 Clock |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=24 April 2024 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>